Intertwined
by FireOpal
Summary: Cowrite between EbonyBeach romance and FireOpal technical.What if the Doctor hadn't regenerated at the end of the PotW? What if he'd been able to transfer all the power back into the TARDIS? Imagine what adventures they would have together... 9thDrRose.
1. Chapter 1

Hello there!  
And welcome, welcome to the **first, **the **amazing** 'Intertwined', the first (and hopefully not last!) co-write between my good self, FireOpal, and the astounding EbonyBeach! Everyone, applause for this woman as this is her first Doctor Who fic, and she has only ever seen 4 episodes (something I'm trying desperately to remedy). So, without further ado, I give you... Intertwined. 

Summary: What if the Doctor hadn't regenerated at the end of the PotW? What if he'd been able to transfer all the power back into the TARDIS? Imagine what adventures they would have together... 9thDr/Rose.

* * *

Clutching Rose's limp form in his arms, the Doctor practically fell through the door into the TARDIS, her safety his only thought. Soon the massive light that was the heart of the TARDIS, the raw power running through his veins and beating through his double hearts like blood would be choking him, destroying single cells through its sheer energy.

For now though, he carefully lay Rose on the metal floor, her blonde hair spilling out to frame her calm face. That look, that cold power that they had held was gone now, but he still shuddered at the memory. He didn't know whether it was because of what they had shared or if he was just imagining it, but he could sense her somewhere in the back of his mind, her life force seemingly intertwined with his. Reaching out a pale hand, he traced her cheek lightly and a sad smile formed on his lips as, not for the first time, he began to lose himself in her. She was so beautiful, so pure: she was everything he had ever-

Something snapped inside him and he immediately withdrew his hand. Now was not the time. They needed to get away, away from this dead place. Straightening forcibly, he made his way over to the console, pulling levers, pressing buttons and flicking switches. He could feel it ghosting over his fingertips as he reached for the bicycle pump - death was coming for him. He knew its feel by now; after all, he had already died nine times. But he would be leaving Rose, and that hurt more than the spasms of pain creeping through his muscles. His Rose.

Eventually the central column started to move, grinding and whirring its way out of the time stream. Relief shining in his blue eyes, he sank against the controls as his legs gave way, sliding bonelessly to the floor. He lay there, his eyes creeping closed for what would be the last time, his senses going into overdrive despite the intense agony that flowed through him. Such power, such _pain_…

The metallic, electronic smell of the console room, the feel of the hard floor beneath him, the hum and vibration of the ship,_ his ship_, dematerialising from space and time, all flooded into his mind. Then something else, something that felt smooth, cool, yet strong and gentle all at once. A voice.

_So long together, and only now you see me, Theta._

Dredging his eyes open in surprise, he looked wearily around. No-one. Well, this had never happened during regeneration before…

_That is because you could not hear me, my Theta. But now you can, yet at such great cost…_

"W-who are you?" he called out, stumbling slightly over the words.

_I am what was, what is, and what yet shall be. I am Time, I am Space. I am the TARDIS. _

A silver chuckle. _Such an odd name, though it serves its purpose. Your granddaughter was an intelligent woman._

"The TARDIS?" he whispered disbelievingly, although he already knew the answer.

_For one so usually full of answers, you are surprisingly quiet._

Somehow in that remark there was a small smirk._ However, I can feel your pain, so I will explain. I am the TARDIS, and you have my heart. She, the young human opened me and looked deep within, something no-one has done before. And so I entered her, created the person, the entity Bad Wolf. She used me to do what Time Lords could not - to end the Time War. _

_But she is but a human, and you know that no mind can withstand all that is me, all that is Time. I tried to withdraw, but I could not. I- I am sorry._

"I told her she shouldn't have done it… She was safe!" The Doctor's gaze was fixed upon her, lying so silently, so still.

_She was away from you, and she would not have stayed while you were in danger; while you were apart. Neither would you. You kissed her to save her._

"She would have died, she can't regenerate like me…" the Doctor said, falling into her once again, knowing that the TARDIS saw straight through his attempt to hide what he was almost too afraid to admit.

_But she cannot stand to see you die either. Even if you are alive, you will not be **him**. You will exist, but you will not be the man she loves, and your very presence will destroy her._

A tear slipped down his pale cheek as he watched her sleeping. He wanted so desperately to go to her, to hold her hand and stroke her golden hair, but something held him back. Fear. He was scared of what might happen, afraid of what he would become confronting a situation that was completely unknown to him. The words of the TARDIS ran through his mind, and another tear followed the first. "I couldn't... I- I _can't- _"

_I know._

The gentle, feminine voice was almost sympathetic, sorrowful. _You cannot do a thing to stop this now. But I can._

A sudden, new noise came from far within the sentient ship which tore his gaze from Rose, a deep throbbing, getting louder and louder, echoing around the room, beating in time with his hearts. A familiar ghostly golden tendril snaked out of the very air, trailing its way down to his awed face. It stopped, coiled in on itself, and unravelled, weaving its way through the air like a dance.

_You care about this one, more than all the others, and she cares about you too. I saw it in her. Her human mind is small yet so full of emotion, compassion, love. Take care of her, my Theta. Take care of your Rose._

Reaching out a shaking hand, the Doctor raised a finger, and brushed the tip

of the ribbon gently. It felt warm, like mild electricity, but also soft as it

caressed his finger. There was the strangest sensation, as if he was floating and falling at once, and he closed his eyes. Somehow, inexplicably, the TARDIS was removing itself from him, taking back its heart and carefully healing him as it left. All this happened in a space of a few short seconds, before he felt a soft touch breathe across his mind, talking to him as his people had once been able to.

_Heal now Theta_.

The tendril wove back through the air and disappeared, somehow returning itself to the great mind that was the TARDIS. Blinking, the Doctor reached out and pulled himself up, using the console as his support. Where there had been pain, torturous pain, was just a dull ache, and his mind was clear again.

Looking at the central column with new eyes, he half-smiled. "Thank you." There was no reply, and the smile faded when he looked around.

Rose, blonde hair spilling out onto the hard floor, her soft brown eyes shut and her features slack and pale, lay like death. He hesitated.

_Go to her._

Obeying the last command of his old companion, he walked quickly across the room and knelt beside her. Stroking her soft hair with one hand, he looked up again, his eyes roving as he spoke.

"Thank you."

**Reviews will be passed around between myself and Hana. Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

Hello! FireOpal here again, with Chapter 2! Go us! This one was written by the esteemed EbonyBeach, with me acting as Beta and DW technical help. We're ecstatic about our influx of reviews, so thank you all! Personal messages at the end (as usual to my usual readers). The usual disclaimers (forgotten last chapter I think... oops) apply. We own nothing.

Enjoy!

* * *

Everything was black, aching, heavy like lead. Thoughts blurred between consciousness and an even deeper sleep; confusion, pain, fatigue. Yet this place was strangely peaceful; healing almost - and there was a lot to be healed. Something had been ripped from inside of her, she could feel where it has been torn from every cell of her body. It had been truly wonderful and utterly terrifying at the same time, bringing light and so much power, leaving her unconscious and without memory, erasing her thoughts from Time and Space.

But for all she had lost, Rose Tyler was now more whole than she had ever been before in her life. Someone was speaking softly, and yet there was no sound save the steady, familiar hum of her surroundings. The voice was in her head, carried by a throbbing, golden bond between two minds, two souls.

_"Come back to me Rose."_

The vortex of darkness, all she had known for so long, began to slip away. Through the bond she found strength and encouragement, and by intuition alone she answered the call. Light and warmth began to seep across her, washing away the last effects of a mind-seizing drug. Slowly she began to emerge from her sleep, coughing slightly, constantly being reassured by someone else's thoughts. In her semi-conscious state she was unable to recognise the voice behind the words which breathed fire back into her heart, but when she opened her eyes and found herself looking straight into his, she knew: the Doctor was inside her mind, and he had saved her.

* * *

Relief spread throughout his body like an orgasm, sending shivers from the tips of his fingers to the ends of his toes. He was aware of her in the back of his mind, felt the power of her mixture of emotions, sensed her blinding exhaustion and how it overrode her confusion at her current situation. And yet all he really saw was Rose. 

She reached for his hand and squeezed it, managing a small smile. "You..."

He knew he was grinning like a maniac but he didn't care. "Who did you expect, Ricky?"

"It's- " She found she was too tired to even correct him, and a yawn escaped her lips. Her eyes began to drift closed against all her better instincts - she would have been quite content to sit and watch the Doctor watching her forever.

"Doctor?" She murmured. Her eyelids were so heavy, and the strange, steady pulsing of two heartbeats in the back of her mind was the softest lullaby.

"Yes Rose?"

He couldn't help it - he just had to touch her. Leaning over her, he stroked the back of his fingers down her cheek, brushing his thumb across the corner of her mouth as she moved slightly into his hand. The urge to kiss her was almost overwhelming, but again fear held him back, and he told himself she needed rest and a good night's sleep. It wasn't a bad excuse, but he couldn't quite bring himself to believe it.

"What happened?" She said after a short pause in which they acknowledged this new-found closeness. She opened her deep brown eyes, and what he saw there cut him like a knife.

She didn't remember. Satellite 5, the Dalek Invasion, the Heart of the TARDIS, Bad Wolf, the end of the Time War, _their kiss_... all gone, disappeared, vanished, lost forever like they had never happened.

_But they had._ Rose Tyler had saved the Earth; saved every human from the inconceivable evil of the Daleks; saved_ him_, the Doctor, the last of the Time Lords, the person she had loved in that moment with every electric fibre of her being.

He faltered completely then for the first time in nine hundred years, so much so that he lost all notion of Time and Space and simply ceased to exist within himself. The darkness was complete, the silence deafening. It was life and death and everything and nothing all at once.

And yet there was light and warmth and hope in a golden cord which bound his life force to someone else's, kept him alive and sane, always bringing him back.

_Rose._

_You care about this one, and she cares about you too._

_Beautiful Rose._

_Take care of her, my Theta._

_Take care of your Rose._

_Go to her._

_Go to her._

_Go to her..._

The TARDIS swam sharply into focus around him with a sickening wrench, and he knew what he had to do. What did it matter if she didn't remember? She needed him to be strong for her, to look after her: then, and only then, could he confront his own demons.

Lifting her easily into his arms, he carried her to her bed - she was asleep before her head hit the pillow. As he pulled the cover over her, he pressed a gentle kiss to her temple.

"You happened, Rose Tyler."

He stayed with her all night, watching her in the darkness, careful not to touch her; although when her hand found his in sleep, he held it tightly and did not let go.

* * *

**Review Responses**

EbonyBeach extends a big thank you and hug to you all!

**CathP** - Lol, so are we!

**Uh, yeah - **Glad you like it! I myself am waiting to see Tenant in action before I make a judgement, but I really think he (CE) should've stuck around longer. After all, Tom Baker was in the show for _4 years, _and did it kill his career? No.

**Han - **This is definitely being continued! We here love 9Dr/Rose (as you can tell!)

**VampireHelsing - **Nice to see you again, glad you like it.

**Taz - **hehe, nice one Tori!

**The Angel of Hope - **We aim to please!

**Chaimera - **If you see any formatting out of place, tell us (sometimes we can't see what's in front of our faces!) and I'll correct it.

**golwenadaneth** - For all that is Daleky? Scary thought, but we **will** continue. We have plans. Mwuhahaha!

**Iale** - Glad you like it, more here for you!

**Mandy** - No spoilers, but Jack is not forgotten. And don't be afraid to babble on, I do it all the time grins

**fobofish92** - Unless? Unless you read this fic of course!

**Kat** - A one-shot? Surely you jest! More in the making I promise you.

**YamiKITG** - Thank you, hope you enjoy it!

**shansuedluvsbitch** - More for you!

**Scary Miss Mary** - Interesting? Is that good or bad? Oh well, hope you like it.

**Becsy Lexi** - Cry? Aw, I had no idea this was so sad... but then I rarely sob over my own fics. Lol.

**ears** - Jack is not forgotten. That is all I will say.

**Interstella** - Thank **you**. Your reviews make our day!

**sweetheartedfairie** - Thank you so much for returning to review! We had technical difficulties (I posted wrong!), and I had to repost to sort them. Glad you liked it!


	3. Chapter 3

Hana's Comment: Well, we're back. I had a mental breakdown and decided to delete this whole chapter, but the the truly fantastic FireOpal convinced me it was worth saving, so really you have her to thank, even though we both wrote this! ;)

F/O: Ignore her, I'm not that fantastic. We both wrote a lot of this at 4 in the morning after watching nearly the entire new series - all night!

Hana's Comment again: It was fun! Hehehe! We wrote down (between squealing!) all incidences of hand-holding and hugs - it's all so _wow_. Hmm...

* * *

Review responses:

**YamiKITG: **Thank you!

**Becsy Lexi**: More is here! Glad you like the bond thing, it gets explained a bit more here.

**sweetheartedfaerie**: Aw Thankies!

**scary miss mary**: Let's hope we're still doing something right! Thank you.

**golwenadaneth**: Ok ok we're scared! ('For all the daleky' - that is scary!) Here you go!

**Uh.yeah**: You're right, CE will _always_ be THE Doctor, no matter what. (F/O- I like Tennant! Hana - Yeah but come on, you're the first to admit you'd love to get in CE's leather jacket:p Wouldn't we all...!) Thank you for the review,we hope you didn't actually stare at the computer till now... just forward us your health bills.

**Vampirehelsing**: We haven't seen Tennant really in anything else, but we're gonna give him a chance. Thanks!

**The Angel of Hope**:Wow, we're so glad you like what we're doing! (Hana -I was particularly proud with that paragraph too - thank you!) Hope you enjoy this as well...

**Sakina the Fallen Angel**: Well this explains a bit more about the whole bond thing, so we hope you like where we're gonna take it - it will include _a lot of_ fluff eventually! ;)

**Slayergirl**: Thank you!

**The Twilight Writer**: Aw we're so happy you're loving this! And we're very talented? Why thank you! (F/O - You can stop waiting now!)

**Laseri**: We're amazing too? Thankies! I think we can safely say she will get her memories back... eventually. Until then, bring on the angst! ;)

**rebeccazoe**: Sorry it took too long, we had serious problems... but it's ok! Everything's good, and it's here now!

So, without much further ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 3

Rose woke to the worst hangover she'd ever had, and that was saying something. Her head pounded as she tried to sit up, blinking in the bright light, and through tired eyes she saw the Doctor grinning as he sat next to her on the bed. He held out a glass of water and two painkillers, but she ignored him and slumped back into the pillows.

"How much did I drink last night?" She murmured, pressing a hand to her forehead. She didn't remember anything, but then that wasn't really unusual...

"Absolutely nothing at all."

She opened one eye and regarded him. "Don't lie, I'm a big girl, I can take it. Just give me the grand total. And," she warned as he began to speak, "say it straight - we both know it must've been a lot for me to be feeling this bad."

"Rose, you didn't touch a drop, I swear. And actually," he added, looking amused, "I wouldn't know what it's like to wake up feeling like the inside of a Slitheen's intestine, seeing as I've never had the desire to throw away my self control and become so astonishingly inebriated in such a vulgar and expensive fashion."

She let his comment slide as her eyebrows flew up in shock, making her grimace from the pain it caused. "You've never had a hangover? Never been drunk?"

He shook his head, motionning for her to take the paracetamol, which she did gratefully. "Time Lords don't get drunk Rose, it isn't - well, it _wasn't _- seen as professional. Besides," he added, taking back her empty glass and putting it on the floor, "I could drink a whole pub and notev'n slurm'speech." He smiled as she fought between laughter and the pain it induced. "You should try some Opilian liquor from Texeran in the Seventh Nebula - one mouthful would knock a human unconscious for two days."

"Remind me of that next time we're stuck on some god-forsaken planet and I get sick of your pathetic jokes."

He grinned but she noticed his hearts weren't really in it. His eyes seemed to hold the same expression that surfaced when his home - the now mythological Gallifrey - was mentioned: a deep sorrow which clouded and yet sharpened the blue gaze. As always, the Doctor's raw emotions were contagious, and Rose could feel the sadness creep in at the back of her mind, but she could have sworn it was more intense, more _real _somehow.

And then something else unusual happened: the sadness was replaced with a false cheerfulness - and that was not her own emotion.

_Sorry_.

She looked up sharply, wincing as she mirrored the Doctor's frown. "You say something?"

He seemed startled. "No..."

"Yes you did," she insisted. "You just said 'sorry'."

_Rose, what's going on? _He thought, their gazes still locked. Brown eyes widened as the words crossed his mind, and suddenly breathing became impossible.

"You- " She swallowed, struggling to clear her mind from a double dose of complete confusion. "You just did... _it _again... I- Doctor?" Realisation flooded her thoughts, but she didn't understand one bit. And then his eyes were shining with the exact same comprehending, and she knew.

The world fell away from beneath her as everything went black.

* * *

"So let me get this right - our minds are connected by some sort of bond... and we can tell what each other's thinkin'?" Rose frowned as she listened to the Doctor's explanation. After she fainted, she had woken briefly four minutes later, and then fallen asleep again for another several hours. 

During this time he had been able to think - _really think_ - about just what was going on. Throughout the previous night he had been so worried about her that he hadn't managed to get his head around anything other than the reality that she was alive and desperately in need of his care and support... That and the fact he couldn't have drawn his mind from her for anything, as for the first time he had actually admitted to himself, and to her (although she didn't know it) that he was in totally, utterly, madly in love with her.

It was one of those things he had always known deep down in the very bottom of his hearts. There had been holes there for so long that when Rose Tyler took his hand and filled them with her smile, he didn't realise what it was that at once both suffocated and enlightened him. As the feeling grew with time and adventure, she smiled still, and he often caught himself thinking about her in ways which were not entirely appropriate, and yet which he knew she was guilty of too.

Sitting there, watching her sleep, there was nothing else in the universe; nothing to tell him it wasn't right or proper or _allowed_; nothing to stop his mind wandering through all that they had done and seen and escaped together. This 'stupid little ape' had saved his life on numerous occasions: saved his life the moment she walked into it.

And then there had been their kiss. If he closed his eyes he could remember it to perfection, as though it was happening all over again - although he suspected this was due more to imagination than memory. Her eyes had been so trusting, her skin so soft, her lips so sweet and warm. And everything was so alive, pulsing with electricity: the same electricity that was responsible for this bond they now seemed to share.

He was certain that was what had formed the link between their minds. Quite why, he didn't know, but what did that matter? He guessed that there had had to be some sort of after-effect of sharing so much raw power, and this wasn't so different for him than having the TARDIS in his head.

"Not exactly." Rose was leaning back against the pillows, nursing a cup of tea that had long since gone cold, and he moved ever so slightly so his leg broke contact with hers - however many times he did this she always seemed to move closer again, and if she continued he would soon be falling off the other side of the bed. If he said it was because he disliked the contact, he would be lying, and so too would he be if he said it made him feel uncomfortable - the problem was, it was entirely _too _confortable for him to sit there and ignore it.

She didn't seem to have noticed though, so he continued to speak as though he wasn't going through any sort of inner turmoil whatsoever. "Yeah our minds are connected by a bond, but we can't read each other's thoughts, unless we direct them specifically."

"What, like telepathy?" Rose asked, brow furrowed in thought. The Doctor looked at her, as always slightly surprised at how fast she was catching on, and surprised with himself at how he was always surprised by her.

"Yeah, sort of."

She looked up, a small smile on her face. "First it was your TARDIS, now it's you - too many more people and it's gonna get crowded in here!" she said teasingly, tapping her temple with her index finger, before concentrating again. After a few moments, he knew why.

_Can you hear this?_ Her voice sounded in his head.

_Yup_ he replied in kind, and she laughed uncertainly.

"Well," she said out loud, "at least when we get into another of your sticky situations, we can still chat."

"_My _sticky situations?" he said in mock-surprise, his amusement shimmering down the bond.

She grinned ruthlessly and poked him in the chest with her finger. "Yep, _your _sticky situations."

"The gratitude!" He shook his head as if trying to compose himself, and although he was still smiling, he suddenly seemed more distant from her than the other side of the universe.

There was a pause, before Rose said hesitantly, "Doctor? Are you alright?" He was staring at his hand, although he wasn't really seeing it. She peered up at him, brushing an errant strand of hair behind her ear, trying in vain to find his gaze.

"I'll live." He knew it wasn't fair on her for him to switch off completely without explanation or apparent reason, but what with fighting between the urge to kiss her senseless and breaking down completely into her arms, he couldn't help it. He was trying so hard to act normally, to reassure her everything was alright, but how could he do that when everything was so plainly not?

He tried to ignore the sudden sting of tears in his eyes and forced a smile for her. He didn't know what had come over him. One moment he was able to pretend everything was fine: that he hadn't almost died and lost her in the process; that she didn't have any recollection of what had happened; that he hadn't admitted he was in love with her and it was ripping him apart; that he wasn't so weak because of his feelings for her that he couldn't control them anymore.

He sighed inwardly. It was this word _feelings_ he didn't like. In his profession, feelings were not needed. Daleks didn't have feelings, and if he were put into a situation where he haboured any emotion other than his sheer loathing for the enemy, he would be weaker and almost certainly on course to lose. It just didn't bear thinking about.

And yet that said, here he was with Rose, the woman who could read his feelings through a telepathic bond created by the TARDIS; formed because of his feelings for her, his duty to save her, and his absolute and utter love for her.

It was beginning to seem that feelings played a much larger part in his life than he had once thought.

But what did he feel now? If she remembered, he would feel a lot more at ease than he did now. If she loved him, he would no doubt feel like he had never felt before. If... So many if's, so little time. One thing was certain though - he couldn't carry on like this for much longer.

Snapping out of his reverie, he realised Rose had been speaking. "What?" His voice was harsher than he intended but she seemed lost in thought and hadn't appeared to notice.

She turned her wide-eyed gaze upon him. "Say that again."

"What, _what?"_

"No. That thing you just said, about livin'..."

"I'll live." He sounded as confused as he felt, and momentarily abandoned his own pain to lean forwards and press his hand against her forehead, checking her temperature.

She watched him as he seemed to find everything was alright and moved his hand back slowly. There was a horrified expression on her face, as if a shocking realisation had just dawned, and when she spoke her voice shook. "But you didn't... I mean, you _did _cause you're here now but..." She frowned and squeezed her eyes shut, which only served to worry him further.

"Rose...?"

"Doctor you were about to die!" She looked terrified now, and the tears shining in her eyes brought them back to his aswell. "I remember now. That thing, that message - you sent me back in the TARDIS - it said you were dead or dyin' or somethin' - but you're here..." She looked him up and down as if trying to assure herself that he really was. "Doctor, _what happened_?"

Those words brought back with them the memory of the night before, and the agonising realisation that she honestly didn't know, sending daggers once again through his hearts.

He was about to reply when she let out a small gasp and put a hand to her mouth. "Oh my God, the Daleks." The daggers twisted painfully, making him close his eyes and grasp the bedcover in his hand. "We were on Satellite 5, the Daleks, they were - invadin' the Earth or somethin' - and then you sent me back..." She rubbed her temples with her fingers, as if this would induce the memory, before turning accusing eyes on him.

"You were dyin' and you sent me home!"

There was a ringing silence, broken only by Rose's heavy breathing. The Doctor didn't look as if he was about to speak - in fact, she got the distinct impression he had never been more uncomfortable in silence in his life.

"Why won't you talk to me?" Her voice was a deadly whisper. "Why don't I remember anything? What happened with the Daleks? How did we get this bond? And where's Jack? Doctor, tell me!" She reached up to turn his face towards hers but, without warning, he grabbed her wrist and met her gaze, and the expression there instantly stilled her argument.

She stifled a sob suddenly. "_Please_."

At the look of complete desperation and helplessness in her eyes, the daggers finished their job, and he felt a single tear trace its path down his cheek as he died inside.


End file.
